SSL Encryption with Let’s Encrypt

1. Installing a Free Let’s Encrypt Certificate

1. Open your Webhosting Control Panel (WCP).
2. Select the desired domain under Websites & Domains.
3. Go to the Dashboard tab and select SSL/TLS Certificates.

4. Select Install under Install a free basic certificate provided by Let’s Encrypt.
5. Optional: Adjust your email address if necessary.
6. Optional: If you need additional protection for your subdomains, select the checkbox next to Secure the wildcard domain. Please note: Setting up with wildcard requires additional steps and will prevent the certificate from being renewed automatically.
7. Recommended: Select Include a "www" subdomain for the domain and each selected alias to also secure the "www" subdomain.
8. Click Get it free.
9. Encryption with Let's Encrypt is complete. The certificate is automatically issued, set up, and renewed regularly.

Wildcard

With a wildcard certificate, you can secure a domain and all its subdomains with just one certificate. Please note: A wildcard certificate is not automatically renewed after it expires. You must renew it manually.

A wildcard certificate can be useful in the following cases:

• If several subdomains are operated under the same main domain.
• If subdomains change frequently or are created dynamically.
• To reduce the administrative effort for certificates.
• If all subdomains are subject to the same security requirements.

Setup

1. Do not click Reload during this step. Leave this tab open during the next step.
2. You will be redirected to a confirmation page containing instructions on how to set your domain's DNS records. This must be done before encryption can be activated. Make a note of this information.

Set DNS Record

1. Open your Customer Control Panel (CCP).

2. Select the Domains menu item.

3. Find the domain from the previous step and click on the Magnifying Glass Icon to the left of it.

4. Go to the DNS tab.

5. Create a DNS record as follows:

   • Host: _acme-challenge
   • Typ: TXT
   • Destination: the entry formatted in bold

   If you want to create a wildcard certificate for a subdomain, add Host without entering the domain itself. Example: _acme-challenge.cloud for _acme-challenge.cloud.mydomain.tld You must also define the DNS record for the subdomain itself, otherwise it would no longer be accessible.

6. Click Save DNS records. It can take up to 48 hours for the changes to take effect.

7. Once the changes have been applied, go back to the Webhosting Control Panel (WCP) and click on the Reload button.

8. The setup is complete.

2. Manually Renewing a Let’s Encrypt Certificate

If you have selected a wildcard certificate, the certificate will not be automatically renewed after it expires. You must renew it manually.

1. Open your Webhosting Control Panel (WCP).
2. Select the desired domain under Websites & Domains.
3. Go to the Dashboard tab and select SSL/TLS Certificates.
4. Click Reissue Certificate.
5. Select Install under Install a free basic certificate provided by Let’s Encrypt.
6. Optional: Adjust your email address if necessary.
7. Optional: If you need additional protection for your subdomains, select the checkbox next to Secure the wildcard domain. Please note: Setting up with wildcard requires additional steps and will prevent the certificate from being renewed automatically.
8. Recommended: Select Include a "www" subdomain for the domain and each selected alias to also secure the "www" subdomain.
9. Click Get it free.

3. Managing Options

Seting Up Redirection to HTTPS

To increase security for website visitors, you can set up automatic redirection from HTTP to HTTPS. This uses a permanent and SEO-friendly 301 redirect. This ensures that all requests to the unsecure HTTP address are automatically redirected to the encrypted HTTPS version of the website.

1. Open your Webhosting Control Panel (WCP).
2. Select the desired domain under Websites & Domains.
3. Go to the Dashboard tab and select SSL/TLS Certificates.
4. On the left side under Options, activate the slider for Redirect from http to https.

If you want a browser to always access your website exclusively via HTTPS and never via HTTP, activate the slider for HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security). If a user cannot connect via HTTPS, the website will not be available to them.

4. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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